On Saturday, eight individuals, including two children, lost their lives when a landfill collapsed in the city of Kampala, Uganda, according to the city authority.
Following heavy rainfall, local media reported that a landslide at the garbage dump in Kiteezi, a district in the northern part of Kampala, engulfed homes, people, and animals.
“On a very sad note, eight people have so far been found dead, six adults and two children,” the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), which operates the site, said in a statement.
The KCCA reported that 14 individuals were rescued and transported to the hospital. Their condition was not revealed.
“The rescue operation is still ongoing, and we shall share updates as they come in,” the statement added.
Images depicting the disaster scene displayed a bulldozer moving through heaps of refuse while groups of community members observed.
The KCCA said there was a “structural failure in waste mass this morning resulting in a collapsed section of the landfill”.
“Our teams, along with other government agencies are on ground taking the necessary measures to ensure the area is secure and to prevent any further incidents,” it added.
According to a report by the Daily Monitor, an independent newspaper in Uganda, Erias Lukwago, the leader of the city authority, cautioned in January that individuals employed and residing near the Kiteezi landfill faced potential exposure to various health dangers as a result of waste overflow.